It's time for Backstage Blogging Section TWO!!
Section One of backstage blogging centered around blog utilization. I asked a group of thirty bloggers who had been blogging for less than six months "What do you hope to accomplish with your book blog beyond sharing your love of literature?" You can see their responses to that question: here & here. I also asked a group of thirty bloggers who have been blogging for over six months to several years "As the operator of a well-known blog, how do you put your star power to good use?" You can see their responses: here & here.
This next section is centered around voice! Stay tuned the next four weeks to see what these fantastic bloggers have to say about this topic!
(Special thanks to Susan from Wastepaper Prose who inspired and helped me develop this series!)
"Is the idea of finding your voice and creating a unique blogging identity intimidating?"
Yeah definately, there is so much competition out there to catch your audience's attention and to do this you have to be unique which isn't easy with all the blogs around me and there ways to catch the readers attention. Even if I do think of something there is always that worry that its been done before or its alike one that is already going around the net. I hope that whatever I do on my blog people like but I understand there is never any gaurantee and I would love for my readers to tell me so.
-Ayesha of The Readings of a Busy Mom
Finding my voice and being unique was at times both difficult and easy. Difficult because since these days there's so many bloggers--which is awesome because they're some of the most amazing, supportive people I know!-- it limits your ability to create new things. Though people do (and I'm both shocked and in awe of them), it's like: "Oh that? Your copying it from someone else., even if you have the best intentions. It's easy because everyone's their own person and have their own way of explaining things. I know people who only write 3 paragraphs for their reviews and they got everything down. I use 4, and sometimes I feel like adding an extra one (sometimes I even do) It's intimidating to create a new idea and search to make sure no one else has already come up with it, or see the immensity of the YA blogging world these days, but the more, the merrier!
-Harmony of Radiant Reads
Not really. I'd say when you’re actually talking to a person it’s easy to be fake, or not come across 100% you. But when I’m sitting down and writing, expressing my opinion, I find it easy to just be me. When i'm blogging i try to be 100% myself. I find it easiest to be real; I just try to feed off my own personality. My personality is pretty...unique (some may say crazy, erratic, manic...) I’m not afraid to speak my mind. I just want to have fun and be myself with my blogging identity. :)
-Khadija of Black Fingernailed Reviews
I don't really find it intimidating at all actually. I never really had trouble finding my voice because I type exactly as I would talk. I'm one of those people who doesn't have a filter whether I'm speaking or typing and I think that helps a lot when blogging. I don't think, "Oh, I really have to be funny now," or, "I think I'm going to be serious in this post." I don't really have an internet alter-ego, just me.
-Cara of Chasing Reviews
Actually, yes, a little. We all participate in the same memes, so at first glance the only thing that sets us apart from other book blogs, are our blog designs. It's when you read the individual reviews and responses, that you get a feel of who this person is. We have to put a bit of ourselves into these reviews. We have to ask unique questions in our author interviews. We have to create posts abouts things that no one else has touched on. All of this is sooo much harder than it seems. Sometimes while writing reviews, I have to remind myself that I'm not interested in writing the most professional book review, but rather how I personally felt about the book. I have to remind myself that this a book review, not a book report. I'm nowhere near where I want to be with my blog, but I'd like to think I'm starting to get the hang of things.
-Amanda of Another Book Junkie
Yes it is! I was very nervous when I created my blog because I wasn't sure if I was doing it right or if people was going to like me. Now I feel more sure about myself but I'm still trying to find my unique voice without caring what the others think about me.
-Gaby of Oh My Books!
Yes, the idea is a bit intimidating, considering there are so many book blogs out there already. However, each blogger has his or her own unique personality, and I think that shines through in the writing style of their blogs. The key is to stay true to yourself in order to truly connect with your readers. I also think having a memorable blog title helps create your unique identity. I chose "Super Librarian" because Super is my last name and I'm a librarian-in-training.
-Taryn of Super Librarian
Not really. Obviously, I want to make my blog sound interesting and be unique enough that people actually bother to read it - if I don't have readers, I might as well be keeping a private journal. But I don't go to a lot of purposeful efforts to make my voice sound interesting. I just talk. Most of my blog posts are fairly casual and conversational. I use this tone, because it's easier and because it's the way I think. In my reviews, I write what I would want to read in another person's review. I like knowing the good and the bad about books, so I point out both (but am careful to never trash a book). I also look at a lot of other blogs to determine what features, both substantive, graphical, and formatting, I like or don't like and incorporate them into my own blog.
-Alison of Alison Can Read
Of course it's intimidating! I put my heart into my reviews and though I've, thankfully, never gotten any negative feedback from them, it's hard to put yourself out there for anyone to see. Another huge intimidating factor is just the wealth of book blogs that are out there - it's super hard to think up ways to make yours unique with so many of them on the Internet. But I just look at the whole blogging experience as fun - read books, write reviews, and make awesome friends along the way!
-Sam of Read Sam, Read!
I think it can be a little intimidating to make sure you are representing yourself well. Being interesting and original is important: you have to try to get a regular reading audience somehow! But the most important thing is to always be yourself. For me, I always try to make sure I'm being honest: I don't review books well just because they're popular or participate in the most frequented memes if I don't have an interest in them. So sometimes it can be a little intimidating to find the balance of being yourself and still finding a way to stand out and keep people reading your reviews.
-Allison of The Allure of Books
I think it is kind of intimidating. Trying to find a good voice is hard enough, but to find one that's unique and enjoyable seems really tough to me. Another reason it's intimidating is because with voice, it's hard to tell how you are doing. With voice, you almost need someone else to tell you, "OMG! I love your voice!" or to tell you that you need to work on it a little just to be able to decide if it is something you should work on. I think that it's starting to get a little bit easier now. It's one of those things that can only be improved with practice.
-Katie of Misadventures of a Teenage Bookworm
The first month I started my blog, I was intimidated. I was worried about what other people would think of the content I put up on my blog. I was also worried that my blog was not going to stand out in a sea of wonderful blogs that are already out there. Looking back at some of those first reviews, I almost cringe. They are just not the best and I was not putting my whole heart into everything because of my nerves. I still have not been around for that long, but I have learned a valuable lesson: Be Yourself! It’s my blog, those are my words and no one else’s, so I have to give my opinion. My blog is not going to look like anyone else’s, because it is my personal place and that is how it should be. It is naturally unique because I am. Now that I have let go, I have found that I am thrilled with what my blog is becoming. I read books and write reviews of them because it makes me happy and that is what counts. I hope that my voice will just come out naturally when I am writing from my heart and people will enjoy my blog because of that.
-Meaghan of A Bookworms Haven
I would be lying if I said it wasn't intimidating at least a little bit! Because of the huge amount of YA bloggers out there, I want to establish myself and have a unique blog that is similar to everyone else's (there's no way it wouldn't be) but not the same exact thing. I want to be unique, and it is intimidating. My goal is just to be myself in my writing, because I know no two people are exactly the same and if I just act like myself I'll be different. I hope in my blog I've established my own voice that sounds friendly, knowledgable, and true to who I am and what I believe.
-Ava of Book Infinity
Sometimes, but the longer I blog, the more this feeling dissipates. I've had a GoodReads account since the summer of 2008, and would review everything I read on there, just for the fun of it. I enjoy writing reviews, and I think the practice I've gotten writing them for the past few years has helped in developing my voice. Granted, it also helps that I just graduated from college and I was an English major, so I've been cultivating my skills and constantly using them. I will admit that sometimes I worry about developing original features for my blog, but I have one established already called Adaptation Corner (where I write about adaptations), and am currently toying with an idea for another. For me, the best way to keep the inspiration flowing is not only to regularly update my own blog, but to read lots of other blogs. The most important thing for me is that even though my blog is not the most well established, I love updating it and being a part of the community.
-Liz of Consumed by Books
I think it has the potential to be quite intimidating. Lots of established bloggers I follow, including The Story, have very unique features and a very distinct way of engaging their audience. For me, it was a natural transition to blogging as I already frequent 271917402 forums (just kidding) daily and had a particular "tone" I created my responses to topics in. This tone pushed through in my blog posts, too. However creating a unique blog has been...interesting! I'm still no where near accomplished yet and I often find myself wondering how on earth people come up with such creative features and memes. But by sprinkling my love of horses through the layout and giving my posts an Aussie touch, I think I'm on the road there. :-)
-Emma Kate of Whats Cracking Coops